“L&T Hydrocarbon Engineering, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Larsen and Toubro, has signed an offshore contract for the ‘Bassein Development 3 Well Platform and Pipeline Project’ with Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) valued at approximately Rs 14.83 billion,” Larsen and Toubro stated in a BSE filing on Friday.

DMK working president M K Stalin on Friday submitted a representation to petroleum and natural gas minister Dharmendra Pradhan opposing the proposed hydrocarbon exploration and extraction project in and around Neduvasal village in Pudukkottai in Tamil Nadu Stalin met the minister in New Delhi.

The pact assumes immense significance for an oil importing nation like India and one that feeds 80% of its crude oil needs through imports. The underground strategic storages have been built at different locations across India and filling half of the oil storage facility at Mangalore amounts to 10 days of India's average oil demand (or about 37 million barrels of crude oil).

In what will help towards India’s energy security goals besides building a strong bond with the United Arab Emirates (UAE), India on Wednesday inked a significant pact with the energy rich Gulf nation on oil storage and management.

According to global news agency Reuters, since late November, major oil companies have announced 11 deals worth more than $500 million each with a combined value of $31 billion, the clearest sign yet that oil executives are more confident a recovery is underway

The world’s top oil companies are back in acquisition mode, targeting smaller exploration and development firms to boost hydrocarbon reserves through acquisitions in contrast to the mergers route that followed previous slumps in crude prices.